PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Jamie Moyer waited 45 years and 22 major league seasons to make his first World Series start. Then a 91-minute rain delay made the Phillies lefty with the 80 mph fastball wait some more.
Now, Moyer’s still looking for his first World Series win.
He seemed to have it after baffling the Tampa Bay Rays through the first six innings of Game 3. He pitched perhaps the game of his career on baseball’s biggest stage before it unraveled in the seventh inning. He came away with a no-decision in Philadelphia’s 5-4 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the World Series.
“I went out and gave it my best,” Moyer said.
Moyer’s first pitch fastball – clocked at 80 mph – to Akinori Iwamura in the first inning made him the second-oldest player to appear in a Series. Jack Quinn was 47 when he pitched for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1930.
Rays lineup. He retired nine straight at one point and showed he still has plenty left.
He mixed his pitches and looked like the 16-game winner who helped the Phillies win the NL East title, not the pitcher with Philadelphia’s only two postseason losses entering the World Series.
A flop against Milwaukee and Los Angeles with a 13.50 ERA in the first two games of this postseason, Moyer tried a belly flop to preserve Philadelphia’s lead in the seventh.
Carl Crawford opened the inning with a perfect drag bunt that sent Moyer diving flat on his stomach. He swiped the ball with his glove and flipped it to first baseman Ryan Howard. The throw appeared to nip the speedy Crawford, but umpire Tom Hallion called him safe, even though replays showed Moyer’s throw got him.
A double and a groundout made it 4-3 and chased Moyer. He tipped his cap to an appreciative crowd and walked to the dugout to a standing ovation after 6 1-3 innings.
“It’s the top to be able to go out and pitch a World Series game in Philadelphia,” Moyer said.
He played hooky from school in nearby Souderton, Pa., to attend Philadelphia’s 1980 World Series championship parade.
Now, he’s two wins away from riding in a float of his own.
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